2003 SEASON ::: MORE RACING NEWS Sears Point Race Report YES !!!!!!! What a totally great race Sears Point turned out to be. I would never have guessed that based on qualifying, when because of a big crash, barely anyone but Ollie got a chance to do a flier. I’m sure they talked about it on the TV, but it really was a joke. It would have cost IMSA nothing to have extended qualifying for a few extra minutes so that those that did not get a chance could at least put some sort of a time up. But they didn’t and as a result, the 3 car started 33rd, and for sure we thought it was going to be a long day. Ron started the race, and at the end of the first lap was only 10 seconds down to Oliver who was leading. I was actually surprised at this, as I expected it to be a lot more. The gap stayed between 10 and 15 seconds, and when the yellow came out at almost an hour, we were in 2nd place as one to the Ferraris that was very strong, had made contact with another car and been penalized. So really, at the end of the first stop, it was already down to the two Corvettes. Our guys did a great stop, and I got out just in front of Kelly in the 4 car. At the end of the first lap, I had about a 5 second gap and it stayed just at that until the next caution that allowed Kelly to catch up. Once green we ran pretty much together, and then towards the end of my stint, I was able to open up a few seconds again, which I was pushing real hard for, as the next stop would be really important. Well bad luck hit us when there was a full course caution again, and during the stop, the 4 car got back in front of us, with now Ron and Oliver driving. I figured it was going to be real close. Anyway, apparently in traffic, Ron went to pass Oliver on the inside of turn 11, and when Ollie moved to block him, Ron moved to the outside. It turned out to be a good break as it was a very clear line, and he passed Oliver on the outside, and then pretty much just held on for the win. It was really great in that our car did not have the best set-up on it on Saturday, but we improved if for the race, and although not the best car, it did the job. As far as the Ferraris are concerned, they were for sure much tougher that we expected. Luckily Goodyear is giving us more competitive tires, and that makes a big difference. There were moments when the Ferrari could run faster than us…but then we also were running a somewhat controlled pace. Had they been right on us, I think we would have done a few things differently, but then I think that is a scenario that we will see in the future. Pro-drive for sure has 4 very strong and competitive drivers, and as neither car is much in the hunt for the drivers championship, they are going to be pushing real hard and taking big chances to the individual wins. If nothing else…it is going to make for a great rest of the season. 3 Rivers is this week….wish us luck !!!!!!! Johnny O 7/29/03 MORE REPORTS...   Site contents © 2002 Johnny O'Connell GM, GM Emblem, Corvette and the Corvette Emblem are registered trademarks of General Motors Corporation and used with permission.